The present invention is directed to insolubilized, microfragmented ionic polysaccharide/protein complex aqueous dispersions suitable for utilization as nutritious bulking, viscosity or texture control agents in both conventional and novel food products. The microfragmented ionic polysaccharide/protein complex dispersions, have desirable rheological properties including a stable lubricity and creamy mouthfeel which may be utilized in a wide variety of novel, as well as otherwise conventional food products. The microfragmented xanthan/protein complex dispersions may, for example, serve as a fat or oil substitute in food products such as frozen desserts, spreads, dressings, baked goods and sauces. The present invention is also directed to methods for preparing such microfragmented anisotropic xanthan/protein complex dispersion compositions and food products comprising such dispersions.
Substantial technical effort has been directed to the development of oil replacement compositions which possess a smooth or oily mouthfeel, texture and lubricity, for use as a full or partial replacement for edible triglycerides in food products such as margarine, salad dressings such as mayonnaise, and desserts such as toppings, aerated desserts and ice cream, which have reduced calorie content. In this regard, synthetic fatty esters such as sucrose polyesters and polyglycerol polyesters such as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,353,966 and 3,600,186 have been proposed as undigestible fat substitutes for various food products.
Significant research effort has also been directed to the study of complexes of proteins with other polymeric components including various polysaccharides. For example, alginates have been complexed with proteins including casein, edestin, yeast protein, gelatin and soy protein. Gelatin, bovine serum albumen, lysozyme and soy proteins have been complexed with sodium dextran sulfate, sunflower seed albumen has been complexed with alginate or pectin, and whey protein has been recovered from whey through the use of various hydrocolloids. Soybean whey-gum fibers are also known, and it is known that certain proteins will form fibers in the presence of specific polysaccharides, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,792,175. As disclosed in the above referred to U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,559,233 and 4,563,360, meat simulating fibers may be prepared from xanthan gum complexed under appropriate conditions with solubilized proteins. It would be desirable to provide food products utilizing such xanthan/protein complexes having a smooth, creamy texture and mouthfeel for utilization in a wide variety of food products as a full or partial fat replacement. It would also be desirable to provide methods for preparing xanthan/protein complex compositions having a smooth, creamy mouthfeel together with high thermal and dispersion stability, which are capable of imparting oil-like or creamy organoleptic properties to specific food products incorporating such xanthan/protein complex products.
As described in the previously identified U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,563,360 and 4,559,233, xanthan/protein fibrous complexes having desirable characteristics may be provided by solution coprecipitation techniques. However, xanthan gum is relatively expensive and may have limited efficiency for complexing certain protein materials. Accordingly, other fibrous protein complexes of high food quality utilizing less expensive and/or more efficient components would be desirable, and the present invention is also directed to methods for preparing stable, edible, fibrous polysaccharide/protein complexes in addition to fibrous xanthan/protein complexes which may be utilized in a wide variety of food products. In this regard, while xanthan/protein complexes have certain desirable properties, edible polysaccharide complexes which provide a further range of characteristics, would also be desirable, as would complexes which may have improved economics of manufacture through use of a less expensive or more efficient ionic polysaccharide component in the provision of stable, aqueous microfragmented dispersions having a stable lubricity and smooth, creamy mouthfeel. It would be desirable to provide such dispersions which may, for example, serve as a fat or oil substitute in food products such as frozen desserts, spreads, dressings, baked goods and sauces.
It is an object of the present invention to provide methods for the manufacture of novel, nutritious, low calorie food compositions which have desirable, smooth, oil-like texture and mouthfeel characteristics, as well as desirable stability and functionality characteristics. It is a further object to provide novel food compositions which utilize such complex dispersions. These and other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings.